To me, being a ‘connected educator’ means having open communication pathways to fellow educators, parents, and students. I am connected through the use of email, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn but also by taking active roles in the Kentucky Science Teachers Association, American Association of Physics Teachers, and the Kentucky Education Association.
I have found that being connected to the various groups has had a tremendous impact on my practice. Let’s start with fellow educators. A popular saying amongst our kind is that ‘Good teachers create while great teachers steal.’ The meaning is that you can further your practice greatly by learning from the collective experiences of those around you and those who have taught before you. It takes years to get a lesson developed to a polished level that you are satisfied with, so by tweaking what others have done puts you ahead of the curve as opposed to if you had created everything yourself. By being active in the associations, as well as having an online presence, I have created a wonderful pool of human resources that I can go to get ideas about labs and activities that I would otherwise not have the luxury of having. My practice has also benefited from the connection to the students and parents. I have no problem with friending them on Facebook or sharing emails. I have found that they are comfortable with these and will use them far more often than the phone or personal visits, especially in the beginning. Once we have a good rapport with each other, they tend to shift to those more personal forms of communication. As you know, this openness between teachers and parents/students is where you really learn how your classroom is running and where more attention needs to be paid.
Being connected not only helps my practice, but also helps me to be a professional. To me, a large part of being a professional is about being a member of a group with a common trade that openly shares their knowledge and experiences for the betterment of all in the group. While I realize that it is possible to work in isolation in this profession for the entirety of one’s tenure, I believe that one would be short changing themselves, their colleagues, and their students because of the great impact sharing has on the practice, as noted earlier. The great thing about the world today is that we now have so many options in which to connect and share. As you can see, I prefer a mix of in person and online connections. While I find the in person connections most valuable, the online options allow for continuous contact that in the past may have been limited to a one time workshop or an annual meeting. This leads to deeper connections and even more sharing.
When it’s all said done, it comes down to doing what’s best for the students, whether they are in your class or in a fellow educator’s room states away. It is for this reason that I encourage every teacher to take advantage of every opportunity to get connected. Join your education and content associations. Follow and friend your professional idols. Put yourself out there so that not only will you grow professionally, but you can help others do the same. Students everywhere will thank you. Ok, probably not, but they will benefit greatly from your efforts, which is what it’s all about.
Bio - I am currently in my 15th year of teaching science. This is my first year as the chemistry teacher at Mason County High School. The prior 14 years were as the physical sciences teacher for grades 7-12 at Robertson County School. I live in Tollesboro with my wife and colleague, Amanda, and our 3 years old son, Xander.
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